DutchNews.nl reports on articles from the Dutch media noting that Steve Jobs' yacht Venus, which launched nearly two months ago, has been impounded by authorities due to a dispute with famed French designer Philippe Starck over design fees for the ship.

Quote:

Baliffs boarded the brand new yacht Venus last Wednesday with an Amsterdam court order and it is now literally chained to the dock, the FD said. Port service companies have been instructed not to help it to leave.

The dispute centres on a EUR3m unpaid bill from Starck, known for his minimalist interiors, who worked with Jobs on designing the yacht for years. His fee had been established at 6% of the cost price, Rotterdam lawyer Roeland Klaassen told the paper.

The dispute seems to be related specifically to the cost of building the boat, with Starck claiming that the yacht was slated to cost EUR150 million while the Jobs family says that it only cost EUR105 million. The EUR45 million difference in prices means that Starck believes he is missing out on EUR2.7 million ($3.57 million) in design fees.

The original report from Dutch financial newspaper Financieele Dagblad claims that there was no formal contract between Jobs and Starck, and that an out-of-court settlement of the dispute is likely.

You don't make a million dollar deal without having a contract signed! I don't care if you are a minimalist!

That would be weird. I'm guessing there is more to this, but a contract should spell out how such a fee is determined. I'm surprised the article suggests a yacht of this price was impounded based on a supposed verbal agreement.